If you’re searching for what is ostensibly the best and most expensive brunch in Sydney, look no further than Double Bay’s Mrs Sippy. This place is the real deal. I’m talking six courses, bottomless champagne, and a $154 per person price tag.
This is not the place you go for a casual brunch with the girls – this is the kind of place you take someone who you really need to impress (I’m thinking in-laws, but it’s also not a bad ‘desperate to make a great impression’ first date spot, or a ‘please forgive me, I’ll do anything’ spot too).
There are a few things that need to be noted about this exceptional brunch, so that you go in eyes wide open: there is bottomless Veuve Clicquot, and very obliging waitstaff to keep you thoroughly hydrated with it. Upon arrival you are given what looks like a menu, but is instead a list of all of the dishes you will be presented with over the course of your three-hour brunch experience.
If you’re vegetarian, the menu isn’t super vege-friendly and you need to make the staff aware of your dietary preferences as soon as possible (which we had to learn firsthand). And lastly, food will just keep coming out. It just keeps coming.
What follows is a course-by-course breakdown, because skimming over any of the six (COUNT THEM, SIX) courses would be a travesty.
- Seasonal fruit: I’ve never been a fruit for brunch person. But it’s a nice way to start off. There’s honestly not much to be said about this – it’s literally sliced fruit on a plate.
- Golden chia pot: Look, this is one of those brunch dishes that I would immediately glance over on my way towards the words ‘eggs benedict’ on any given menu. However, this one is pretty inspired, and has convinced me that fruit and yoghurt are acceptable brunch options (and to possibly become one of those people who is ‘super into wellness and fitness’). By the end of this course you’ll begin to wonder how exactly you’re going to eat an additional four courses, because both the fruit and the chia pot are the size of any standard brunch dish.
- Smoked trout blini stack: These are served with a horseradish cream, pickled cucumbers and caviar. If you like to play with your food, this is the course for you. The blinis arrive deconstructed, so require a creative flair to assemble and consume. My vegetarian dining partner had her caviar and smoked trout swapped out for avocado. We were both in agreement that this was the best dish on the lineup.
- Brunch pizza: Pizza for brunch is way more my speed than a chia pot. The pizza is crispy, and well seasoned, and the prosciutto is easily omitted for vegetarians, replaced with kale.
- Super salad: Salad for brunch is another concept easily dismissed and laughed at (especially by me – if it doesn’t involve bacon, stop wasting my time), but this salad is pretty spectacular. The salad greens come topped with avocado, grilled eggplant and house-spiced nuts – it all sounds entirely forgettable but I have been trying to recreate it at home ever since. Something about this brunch experience has absolutely changed me as a person, because now I’m praising salads and chia pots.
- Brioche French toast: OK, so you’re five courses deep into brunch, and the waiter asks if you want the optional dessert course of French toast. You’ll consider declining. You’ll think it’s unnecessary. It is not. We almost said no, and would have missed out on the best French toast this side of Paris. The toast comes topped with rhubarb and strawberry compote, and vanilla ice cream. After five full-sized courses, it’s hard to understand why Mrs Sippy pulls back right at the end when it comes to dessert. It’s a shame, because I imagine a lot of people don’t do the dessert course. But trust me: you can and will make room, because the French toast is an experience not to be missed.
Mrs Sippy’s $154 brunch is the brunch to end all brunches. The bottomless champagne doesn’t even contribute to the overall review, because the food is just that good (but the bottomless champagne is a very nice touch). The only criticism is the amount of food you’re served: any one of the dishes would suffice for brunch, so six feels excessive. But also so, so necessary.
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